It seems to me it's not how low can somebody possibly go, nor is it how low can somebody like me can go. Rather, it is how low can I go? The best way to answer that question, IMHO, is to keep track of what you have spent in the past. And by that I mean every dollar. Over the last 7 years I have kept track of 99.7% of my spending. (I wish I knew where that last $200/year was going.) I found out I spend more that I thought.

But now I know where my money is going, and I can plan my early retirement (28 April, 2000 at age 43) accordingly. I know I will spend about $1500/year on bicycling, (Wow, that much on bicycles?) and about $0/year on greens fees.